ArticlePloS one2019
Perceived enablers and constraints of motivation to conduct undergraduate research in a Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences: What role does choice play?
Article in PloS one, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Barriers and enablers of research participation among undergraduate health students in Sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review.BMC medical education · 2026Pooled it
- Undergraduate research implementation in physiotherapy: a hands-on and real experience of a randomised controlled trial.BMC medical education · 2023Trial
- Barriers and enablers to medical students' engagement in research and clinical academic careers: a mixed-methods study.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Effects of students' psychological needs satisfaction on interprofessional competencies: a multilevel analysis.BMC medical education · 2025Article
- Twenty-one Years of Undergraduate Medical Student Research Training at the University of the Free State (UFS), South Africa.Medical science educator · 2024Article
- Students' Perspective on Undergraduate Research Experiences in Indonesian Dental Schools.International journal of dentistry · 2024Article
- Identification of alternative topics to diversify medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy student theses: a mixed method study.BMC medical education · 2023Article
- Motivators and barriers to research participation among medical students in Saudi Arabia.PloS one · 2023Article
- The barriers, motives, perceptions, and attitudes toward research among radiology practitioners and interns in Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in medicine · 2023Article
- A national intercalated medical student research program - student perceptions, satisfaction, and factors associated with pursuing a PhD.Medical education online · 2022Article
- Impact of Undergraduate Research as a Compulsory Course in the Dentistry Study Program Universitas Indonesia.Dentistry journal · 2022Article
- Research-based education in undergraduate occupational therapy and physiotherapy education programmes: a scoping review.BMC medical education · 2022Article
- Impact of Research Training on Newly Graduated Health Professionals' Motivation to Undertake Research.Journal of multidisciplinary healthcare · 2022Article
- Training and assessing undergraduate medical students' research: Learning, engagement and experiences of students and staff.African journal of primary health care & family medicine · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEnhancing evidence-based practice and improving locally driven research begins with fostering the research skills of undergraduate students in the medical and health sciences. Research as a core component of undergraduate curricula can be facilitated or constrained by various programmatic and institutional factors, including that of choice. Self-Determination Theory (SDT) provides a framework for understanding the influence of choice on student motivation to engage in research.
aimThis study aimed to document the enablers and constraints of undergraduate research at a South African Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) and to explore how the presence or absence of choice influenced students' engagement with research in this context.
methodsAn exploratory descriptive design was adopted. Undergraduate students who had conducted research and undergraduate programme staff were recruited through purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were transcribed and thematically analysed. Findings were interpreted using SDT, focusing on how choice at various levels affects motivation and influences research experiences.
resultsMany of the programmatic and institutional enablers and constraints-such as time and supervisory availability-were consistent with those previously identified in the literature, regardless of whether research was compulsory or elective. Choice itself seemed to operate as both an enabler and a constraint, highlighting the complexity of choice as an influence on student motivation. SDT provided insight into how programmatic and institutional factors-and in particular choice-supported or suppressed students' needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, thereby influencing their motivation to engage in research.
conclusionWhile programmatic and institutional factors may enable or constrain undergraduate research, individual-level factors such as the influence of choice on students' motivation play a critical role. The implication for curriculum development is that research engagement might be enhanced if levels of choice are structured into the curriculum such that students' needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness are met.
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